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Welcome to the first of the author updates this week and the writers today spread their talent across genres and also age groups with books for children/YA and adults.

The first author with a recent review is award winning writer Janice Spina for her latest release The First Star.

About The First Star.

Once upon a time there were two children who loved their father so much that they missed him terribly each time he had toleave to go away to find buyers for his woodworking.The two children, Chris and Kim, were each given a gift made by their father to keep close to them until he could return. They worried whether he would return and prayed on the first star they saw each night that he would come home safely.This story portrays the love that a father has for his children and them for him in return. It shows that being kind to others by putting others before you can be rewarding. Also, some things like love and good health are far more important than riches.

Award-winning author, Janice Spina has created another marvelous picture book for children. This time the story involves two children, Christopher and Kimberly and their family. They have very little money so their dad makes a special toy for each of them before he leaves home to find work. Of course, the children miss him very much. They begin wishing on a very bright star, in hopes their dad will return. Many amazing things happen in the story. Christopher and Kimberly realize there are more important things in life than material riches. It’s a great lesson for young readers. No doubt they will remember this lovely story and read it again and again. I highly recommend it.

Now one of the recent reviews for the children’s story and cookery book from the mother and son writing partnership of Robbie and Michael Cheadle. Sir Chocolate and the Sugar Crystal Caves Story and Cookbook. Robbie Cheadle also writes poetry and for Young adults.

About the book

Sir Chocolate and Lady Sweet get sugar water from the Sugar Crystal Caves to make delicious goodies for their shop. Unfortunately something is making the crystals melt. What can Sir Chocolate do? Includes four lovely new recipes.

Sir Chocolate and the Sugar Crystal Caves is a book any child would enjoy. It shares the adventures of Sir Chocolate must encounter. His adventures carried him to the crystal cave where he met a fiery dragon. Who appeared to be unfriendly at first, who heart soften when meeting Sir Chocolate. Characters in the story were a reflection of friendship and the importance of working together to solve a problem. Illustrations were perfect for the story; each illustration appeared to be a baked good. In the back of the book were recipes that children will like making and creating.

The last authors today with a recent review are mother and daughter writing team of HL Carpenter.. for their mystery Murder by the Books. The duo also write for children/YA.

About the book

A letter from beyond the grave brings accountant Fae Childers face to face with murder, embezzlement, romance, and a hidden family legacy.

Certified public accountant Fae Childers is not an embezzler, despite the belief of the accounting firm that fires her for stealing.
But proving her innocence is harder than convincing an IRS agent to allow a deduction. She’s lost her mother, her job, her fiancé, and her self-respect. She’s running out of money and the lease is about to expire on her apartment.

Then the fortune-telling grandmother Fae never knew existed, whose name and psychic abilities she now learns are also hers, issues a challenge from beyond the grave—a challenge that brings Fae face to face with murder, embezzlement, romance, and a hidden family legacy.

When the mystery of Fae’s past collides with the troubles of her present, the situation veers out of control. Her very life is threatened. Who can she trust? The man she’s falling in love with? The former fiancé who has already betrayed her once? Or only herself?

With justice, romance, and her future at stake, Fae must overcome personal and professional obstacles to save herself and those she loves. And she’s going to have to do it fast, before someone else dies.

The mother-daughter duo known as HL Carpenter created a character in Fae Childers who can go the distance. Murder by the Books is well-paced and will hold your interest to the end.

I have a long-standing background in researching financial scams and con-artists, so the topic was a perfect one to entertain me on a cold and dreary Saturday.

Fae Childers is so horrified by the suggestion that she has embezzled from the accounting firm she leaves without defending her decades-long career with the firm.

The fact that her boyfriend has sided with the owners causes her to stay in seclusion in her apartment in Tampa. Wallowing in self-pity, she’s intrigued when a letter arrives informing her of an inheritance from a grandmother she had no idea existed.

The lawyer she encounters in Seafoam appears to be thoughtful, compassionate and handsome. Why is Fae drawn in so by his passionate green eyes? Could Ret Karaffa be at the center of the murders and break-ins that suddenly seem to happen with an unnerving regularity around all the people her grandmother came in contact with while living along the coast in Seafoam?

You’ll learn to love to hate the annoying local reporter, Pat Jablonski. Will she show up dead in the surf too? The real mystery is whether or not the killer believes that Fae has inherited her grandmother’s abilities to see things most of us will never experience. Will he or she recognize the piercing headaches as the same ones Fae’s grandmother had before she solved the mysterious puzzles the inhabitants of Seafoam had with unnerving regularity?

The missing journals and balance sheets hold the answers, but will Fae discover them in time to save herself and protect the vast inheritance everyone is focused on? What of the handsome Ret? Will he provide the love connection she’s been looking for her whole life? This book has a clever plot, interesting characters, and enough last-minute revelations to keep you interested from beginning to end. It was a fast read filled with richly defined backdrops. I thought I’d figured it out three times before I finished it. You’ll need to pick up a copy to find out if Fae has fortune-telling instincts like her grandmother.

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About Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

My name is Sally Cronin and I am doing what I love.. Writing. Books, short stories, Haiku and blog posts. My previous jobs are only relevant in as much as they have gifted me with a wonderful filing cabinet of memories and experiences which are very useful when putting pen to paper. I move between non-fiction health books and posts and fairy stories, romance and humour. I love variety which is why I called my blog Smorgasbord Invitation and you will find a wide range of subjects. You can find the whole story here.
Find out more at https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/about-me/

Reblogged this on Robbie's inspiration and commented:
Thank you, Sally Cronin, for sharing this lovely review of Sir Chocolate and the Sugar Crystal Cave story and cookbook. There are two other lovely books featured here too.

I don’t blame you Sal. I’ve been adding the link manually and saying ‘at Sally’s Smorgasbord’ with no last name. Lol,. everyone knows you and still leaving comments that they miss you there. I didn’t want to wake up the fb algos by typing your full name LOL. Where there’s a will there’s a way 🙂 😉 ❤

I found out today that Dr. Mercola who had a huge following of millions on Social Media is leaving Facebook following its treatment of content… so don’t feel quite so bad… Thanks for sharing where you can Robbie.. hugsx

Thanks for sharing these reviews, Sally. Of course, I already know Janice and Robbie and have read some of their books but I didn’t know the mother-daughter team of HL Carpenter. I think it must be interesting to write as part of a team.

You have to be extremely patient to write with your mother, Norah. It wouldn’t be for everyone. I, of course, adore my mother and would do anything to make her happy. She lives with me so I am used to dealing with her too.